Boundary Creek Trailhead and Bull Trout Horse Camp, Idaho

This is the last blog, of three, about my 2023 trip into the Sawtooth's, or in this case, the White Clouds and the Boise National Forest. For part two, click here: Champion and Tin Cup

The White Clouds.

After leaving Tin Cup, I drove over to Boundary Creek. The actual trailhead is up at the end of Boundary Creek Road, but closer to the highway is a spot to park and camp, with a corral and a pasture! On Saturday while driving by, I had seen a rig there, so I was hoping they would be gone by the time I needed it, on the following Tuesday, and I lucked out.

The camping near Boundary Creek Trailhead.

The camping area is first come first serve and there is a large corral that opens up into a very large field with a stream running through it. There are quite a lot of bushes, it is not wide open, so possibly if your horse is a wanderer, there may be a chance you might not find them the next morning. It's hard to say how far they could get, but I knew my particular pony would stay put. There are no amenities at this spot and it is fairly close to the highway. There is plenty of cell service, as there is a tower on a hill across the street. Not quite a whole mile away, is the actual trailhead, with a star feeder and enough room to park and camp in the rocky turnaround, or in a nearby grassy area. There is a creek nearby, but no other amenities.

The "pasture" area.

The next day I rode the Boundary Creek Trail which climbs quite steeply to the junction with Trail 616. There are great views of the entirety of Redfish Lake on the way up, and you can also see the White Cloud Mountains.

Redfish Lake from the Boundary Creek Trail.

On the Boundary Creek Trail.

The White Cloud Mountains.

I followed 616 over to the first Casino Lake, which you just look down on from above, and then I got to another junction where I briefly started riding towards one more of the Casino Lakes. However that trail was dropping way back down in elevation, so I turned around and went over to one of the Garland Lakes instead. These particular trails are shared with motorcycles and mountain bikes, but I did not see anyone all day.

One of the Casino Lakes.

One of the Garland Lakes.

On the way back down the Boundary Creek  Trail.

After completing that ride I had to ponder for awhile what I wanted to do next, extend my trip a little longer, or wrap things up like I had originally planned. I decided to wrap things up, but I wanted to try to do a ride off of Highway 21 on the way home. I had looked at my map and picked out a specific ride to a couple of lakes, but the next day when I got to that area, there was nowhere to park a horse trailer, so I continued driving and on the fly decided to check out Bull Trout Lake instead.

As I was puttering very slowly on yet another pothole ridden dirt road I started to wonder if this had been a good choice. There were a lot of dispersed camping spots along the way and just as I was thinking maybe I should park in one of them, a sign appeared saying "horse trailer parking" and lo and behold I had stumbled onto a horse camp that I had no idea was there, since my map of the area did not include this section.

The day use area, at Bull Trout Horse Camp.

Bull Trout Horse Camp has four spots that you can fit bigger rigs into. Three of the spots are near the entrance, and then another one is situated farther away near where the camp loop road ends, in a turnaround area. The sites have corrals, and there is a bathroom, a water hand pump, and a dumpster. There is also a creek very close by. The camp is gated and locked because it is reservation only, and they do not allow anyone in there without a horse. There is a day use area with a loading ramp, which is where I parked.

One of the spots at Bull Trout Horse Camp.

The last couple of nights at Boundary Creek had gotten really cold, with ice on my windshield, and when I started my ride from Bull Trout, it was still a little chilly. But like the weather in higher elevations, things change quickly, and I would be wearing a T shirt and shorts by the afternoon.

I decided to ride the Warm Springs Trail which started out very level and passed by Martin Lake as well as another unnamed lake. Then the trail headed downhill quite steeply into Deadman Canyon, following Deadman Creek. I got to an area where there was a small meadow, at which point I decided to turn back. The plan was, I needed enough time to drive at least halfway home that same day. The Warm Springs Trail continues on, (13 miles one way) until it reaches it's other end, at the highway. This is in the Boise National Forest and these trails are also shared with motorcycles and bicycles, although yet again, I did not encounter anyone.

On the Warm Springs Trail.

Martin Lake.

Where the Warm Springs Trail starts to get steep.

A little meadow on the Warm Springs Trail.

Heading back up along Deadman Creek.

Warm Springs Creek, near the horse camp.

I left that afternoon and drove to a random spot along the highway in Oregon, that I had stayed at before, and then cruised the rest of the way back the following day. So glad I made this second trip into the Sawtooth's. Many many, beautiful rides, and if you are set up for dispersed camping, there is no shortage of that, at nearly every trailhead.

GPS COORDINATES TO BOUNDARY CREEK

GPS COORDINATES TO BULL TROUT